About the Writer

Not so young Fashion Graduate From National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Delhi, India. Aspiring journalist. Amongst other eclectic hobbies, she likes writing and has written several poems and articles over her school and college life and now for a living. She would someday like to be be a more popular writer than just on her blogs. 'Tis a lady of grand splendor, who waketh in my bed every morning while the sun beckons her towards night...

Thursday, June 26, 2008

THE BONG CONNECTION

Sometimes just being a Bengali can make you "a lot of more people" than others around you can be. In a sense of duplication of yourself. It may not be a "Bengali" syndrome, but well I may like to give me bengaliness some credit for it.
Various reasons... various ways and I will try to put them up as much as I can.

The high society aparna sen bong... Well this type is very Bengali... you wear big bindis. Cotton sarees, attend all the socialite events and the events that have anything to do with 'social causes' you maybe capitalist also support the naxalites. you are cordially aware of everything around you. and you are the modern strong woman... despite everyone else.

The true communist... you believe in the Marxist principles, would much rather wear kurta, old trousers and hawaii chappals to office. you are absolutely ok with the meager salaries that your boss pays you to survive, and though it will not suffice for you daily diet of 'maach bhaath' you still feel you are getting more than your share, especially since the mill worker isn’t paid even one tenth the amount you get.

Delhi bong (which I am, but, in my defense... I’m not from cr park) you hate all other Bengalis and yet find a bong fellow friend to call up and gossip. you know the other Punjabi guys/girls are just a bunch of show offs with micro pea brains and yet you want to date them and think bong guys are sissy/ bong girls are too ninny. you do find some intellectual bong hot some or the other time in your life and yet stick to the sissy/ninny bong men theory. you hang out with the 'coolest' non bong people all year and yet dont invite them to the biggest part of your year.... durga puja. you think all other bong guys/ girls are assholes/bitches other than you. and at the end of the day you think you are stuck in a world full of bongs, despite whatever you try.

The true bong..... You hate rotis. you cant sleep without rice. you need to have ilish (hilsa) maach at least when it is full in season. you need to have mutton/chicken curry on Sunday afternoons, after which you take a nap. you love watching uttam kumar movies and swear by rabindra sangeet and najrul geeti. You can live your life with satyajit ray if given a chance (ok that’s me) and you would need nothing else. Your year revolves around durga puja.

Devdas… though fictional you want to live upto the image of this famous Bengali. you feel forever in love. In futile love, that is. You get many chances with other chicks/guys and you still are in love with one chick/ guy who is in love/ or married to some one else. You love drinking and smoking and not just coz you dint get the chick/guy. It is just love for the slow poisons of life.

The disenchanted Bengali youth…you see all the anomaly in the society just a façade, they are all the bloody same. And you feel that the blood bath of the 70’s, were after all needed. And you would love a new job/ house/ car/ love.. but continue to live in that old image. In your free time you listen to grunge and head bang to some Bengali rock music too….. and in its anglicized emo lyrics and feel your pain too….

The retrospectre… The most common type of bangali in the market, you just keep looking back to whatever was good in the world essentially bong in nature You keep dreaming that you will be the glorious ray, tagore, nazrul, bankim, bose of tomorrow and you never really get round to doing it.

There is another type which I don’t know what to name, this type scoffs at the merest idea of being a Bengali and will do anything to avoid being called one... “Oh, come on! don’t call me bong yaar”!! types!!! And yet they speak in Bengali to anyone who remotely understands the language.

Some times You also want to be Punjabi, gujrati, tamil, kashmiri, in the true sense Indian and/or American when it suits you, and pride your self in thinking that since the east India company preferred you over all other Indian communities therefore you must have inherited the true brit accent… preposterous I say. That despite the “aaiii am ‘phine’ thanku… you d’o’nt hab to bharry(worry) at ‘o’ll”.. you think you are multi talented and can achieve anything in the world… including competing with mallus to be at all the possible locations of the earth…

I’m sure there are more types of the Bengalis…. Quite literally, I have been one of the above types at sometime of my life or other. Well maybe not completing all criteria but have touched all types… and almost all other Bengalis do the same… be other characters.. in a way prove the much disputed multiple personality disorder… it is a mass syndrome… maybe true for other people too…but so far noticed in only one clan….